Inazuma and Friends
by Washington the Great
Summary: A collaboration between fellow author omyhangu (/u/5501966/omyhangu) and I. Inazuma and friends experience the thrills and perils of sortieing, under the watchful gaze of the Admiral.
1. Chapter 1

"Ka-n-co-lle!" The melodious voice of his loli-clock woke the Admiral from his deep slumber.

Another beautiful day had dawned, the sky an endless expanse of blue, the waters a tranquil layer of glass that stretched to the far horizon. _Perfect weather for sailing_, the Admiral thought in satisfaction. He then hurried to the dock, where his ship girls were waiting.

"Hey, Admiral...a-are you still mistaking me for someone else?" Inazuma, his flagship, adorable as always.

"I'm always ready, Admiral!" declared Akatsuki, greeting with confidence.

"Just being strong isn't enough, Admiral!" Ikazuchi trumpeted.

"Admiral, your order," Hibiki, her soft voice more soothing than most.

_Four destroyers… With all the other destroyers resting, will these be enough? _the Admiral pondered. _However, the enemies I've encountered so far were weak, and these four are my most experienced._ With these facts burning in his mind, the Admiral came to a decision.

"Fleet! Let's set sail!" the Admiral declared, a glint in his eye. "It's time to conquer the Namsei Islands Defence Line!"

* * *

Steam puffing from their boilers, the small fleet set sail from the harbour. Soon, the first obstacle in their journey stood before them - the Compass Girl.

"Spin me!" the girl hollered.

"Couldn't we use a regular compass for once…" Hibiki grumbled to herself.

"All right, all right," the Admiral sighed. With a mighty swing, the directions melded into a blur. Finally, the needle settled on a direction.

"Looks like you're going north-east," declared the girl loudly.

"Good, the resource route. I'm sure we'll be at the boss in no time," the Admiral smiled.

First, however, there was a small enemy fleet to take care of. The Admiral turned to his girls. "Two light cruisers and two destroyers… Piece of cake. Attack, and crush them all!"

"Yes, Admiral!" the four destroyers cheered as one. With that, the battle was joined. Shells rained through the sky as the destroyers bombarded their opponents with a withering hail of fire, then finished them off with a salvo of well-aimed torpedoes.

"Status?" the Admiral asked as the last of their opponents sank into the abyss.

"M-minor damage only, Admiral!" Inazuma cried.

"They barely scratched me, Admiral!" Akatsuki boasted.

"I've only taken minor damage, Admiral," Hibiki murmured.

"I'm completely unscathed!" Ikazuchi proclaimed.

The Admiral clasped his hands together. "Excellent! Let's head on to the boss of these aliens, then!"

* * *

Leaving the wreckage of their enemies behind, the destroyers sailed forth to the next two locations. To the ships' relief, there were no enemies waiting, but instead loads of steel and bauxite greeted them.

All good things come to an end, however, and finally the boss area loomed before them, a foreboding location shrouded by fog. Even the Admiral was slightly unnerved by the ominous air, but the ships had no choice but to proceed into the mist.

"I'm picking up enemy signatures ahead!" Inazuma reported after a period of tense uncertainty.

"Finally. It's time to crush these abominations once and for all. Prepare the weapons!" the Admiral cried. As the fog dissipated, however, so did the Admiral's confidence. Before them lay a fleet of six alien ships, bristling with aircraft and weaponry far beyond anything they had ever seen.

"A-aren't those carriers, Admiral? Two of them?" Hibiki asked, trembling slightly.

"Just attack! If we don't give up, I'm sure we'll prevail!" the Admiral shouted.

* * *

Once again, the destroyers prepared to fire. "Nano desu!" Inazuma cried, unleashing a barrage from her 12.7 cm main guns at an enemy carrier.

To her horror, her target shrugged off the blow, nary a scratch on its armour. It smiled as planes flew off its deck, filling the sky like a swarm of locusts. Approaching Inazuma, they unleashed their deadly cargo, causing her to shriek loudly.

"Inazuma! I'll make you bastards pay for this!" Ikazuchi screamed, opening fire at the enemy carrier to no avail. More planes rained death from the sky in retaliation, leaving Ikazuchi writhing in agony.

The Admiral watched all this, stunned. _Inazuma and Ikazuchi got hit._ _Should I retreat… No! If I flee, it will ruin my reputation as an Admiral! I must prevail!_

"Hibiki! Show these foul aberrations your power!"

Nodding, Hibiki took careful aim. A 12.7 cm shell soared through the air, landing directly on one of the enemy destroyers. With a whoosh of flames, it exploded.

"A critical hit! Great work, Hibiki!" the Admiral pumped his fist in the air. _Looks like I can win this after all… Ikazuchi may sink, but who cares. I can replace her anytime._ The sudden buzzing of planes interrupted the Admiral. Before he could react, torpedoes thudded into Akatsuki, blossoming into a string of searing fireballs.

Clutching the tattered remnants of her clothes to herself, Akatsuki prepared to retaliate.

"Take this!"

An enemy destroyer reeled from her blast, but remained standing. The report of enemy guns came in return, smashing through her torso like a knife through butter.

"My heroic last moment, dying in battle… I suppose giving one's life to aid one's allies is how a lady should behave." With these words, Akatsuki was no more, swallowed up by the cruel waves.

Tears streamed from Inazuma's eyes. "Akatsuki… why…"

The Admiral was unfazed. "Akatsuki proved herself weak! Ignore her failure and carry on!"

Ikazuchi glared at the Admiral. "Our friend just died, and that's what you have to say?!"

The Admiral returned the glare. "Yes. And unless you want to meet her fate too, you will fight!"

Choking back her tears, Ikazuchi tried to land another shot, to no avail. More planes approached, and Ikazuchi prepared to meet her end.

"No!" Hibiki suddenly charged forwards, blocking the deadly attack with her body. Ikazuchi could only watch as the torpedoes detonated, leaving Hibiki's legs a mangled ruin.

In spite of her agonizing injuries, Hibiki remained resolute, the only sign of her pain a twitch on her lower lip. Before she could exact revenge, however, the enemy light cruiser opened fire. Its shell whizzed through the air, cleaving Hibiki's right arm off in a shower of blood.

Hibiki collapsed, overwhelmed by her wounds.

"How shameful… I lost. Farewell, Admiral." A sad smile on her face, Hibiki too sank into the watery depths.

As Inazuma burst into a renewed wail of despair, Ikazuchi clenched her fists. "Admiral! End this madness! We have to retreat now!"

_No! I can still win this! I CAN STILL WIN THIS!_ The Admiral turned, his face resolute. "Night battle. We'll return under cover of darkness and crush them."

* * *

A few hours later, night had fallen. Inazuma and Ikazuchi, already badly wounded, marshalled what strength they had left for the desperate struggle that was to follow.

Ikazuchi solemnly turned to her sister. "Inazuma… If I don't return from this, promise me you'll take care of yourself."

Inazuma's eyes widened. "H-how could you say such a thing?! You can't die! I won't let you die!"

Ikazuchi smiled sadly. Before she could reply, a familiar voice rang through the air. "Cease your chattering, for at last the time has come for our glorious victory! Attack!"

Once again, the two destroyers faced their opponents. "You'll pay for what you did to Akatsuki!" Ikazuchi screamed, unleashing a salvo of torpedoes. She watched grimly as they struck an enemy carrier, inflicting critical damage.

Emboldened by her sister's success, Inazuma took aim. "This one's for Hibiki!" More torpedoes slammed into the last enemy destroyer, obliterating it.

_Yes… Yes! My plan is working! We'll win this!_ The Admiral's moment of triumph was cut short as the hitherto unnoticed enemy heavy cruiser opened fire, the report of its 20.3 cm guns resounding through the air. The barrage punched through her hull and Ikazuchi reeled backwards, coughing blood from her mouth.

"Sister!" Inazuma hurried over to Ikazuchi's side, rivulets of tears glistening on her cheeks. She grabbed her sister's hand in a feeble attempt to keep her afloat.

"Inazuma… it's okay. Live on… for me, for the fleet, for the Admiral." With these words, Ikazuchi closed her eyes for the last time, releasing herself from Inazuma into the watery depths.

"Ikazuchi… my sister... is gone." Inazuma's mind whirled, overwhelmed by grief and loss.

At the same time, the Admiral's thoughts were racing, oblivious to Inazuma's sorrow._ That accursed Heavy Cruiser! If not for it and Ikazuchi's incompetence, this battle would be my win now! Wretches, both of them!_ The Admiral slammed his fist on his armrest. He had vowed to win every battle, for the sake of his personal glory. Nevertheless, this battle was clearly lost.

Clearing his throat, the Admiral gave the one order he had tried to avoid at all costs.

"Inazuma. We shall retreat."


	2. Chapter 2

Inazuma's hurried retreat from the Namsei Islands was marked only by her soft sobbing, mourning the loss of her friends, and especially her beloved sister. She had always been bullied and ostracized by most of the other destroyers, who regarded her as weak and useless. When she was beset by such abuse, it had been her friends and sister who defended her, drove the bullies away, then comforted and reassured her.

Now, she was alone.

"Why? Why did you have to die… I should have been stronger. If I had been stronger, maybe all this wouldn't have happened… It was my fault," Inazuma moaned.

Hearing this, the Admiral rose from his command chair. "Rubbish. Don't blame yourself for the others' incompetence, Inazuma. If it were not for their detestable weakness, we would have triumphed. In fact, I am almost glad that they are gone, since their dead weight won't clutter up my harbor or guzzle precious resources anymore."

Inazuma's eyes widened._ G-glad? H-how could you say such things about my friends, who fought and died for your sake?!_

Ignoring Inazuma's reaction, the Admiral gritted his teeth. "Mark my words, Inazuma. I shall return, with a new, superior fleet, and I shall crush these foul monstrosities who dared defeat me. I shall grind them into the dust. I shall…"

As the Admiral went on and on about his inevitable vengeance, Inazuma burst into a renewed round of sobbing. Now that she knew how little the Admiral thought of her friends, it was a near certainty he would not try to rebuild them either. Although any rebuilt copies of Ikazuchi, Akatsuki or Hibiki would have lost all memories of their previous lives, Inazuma could have lived with that, knowing that over time, their friendship could be rebuilt. But now, Inazuma knew with gut-wrenching certainty that she would never regain what she had lost. Despair enveloped her, and she barely noticed when they finally arrived at the harbour, where all the other ships had gathered.

"Admiral! Are you all right?"

"Where are the other three ships? Did they…"

"The little twerp made it back, but her sister…"

"Silence!" the Admiral roared.

When the chatter had died down, the Admiral addressed his audience. "Ship girls, I won't mince words here. Inazuma and I were forced to retreat from a disaster of epic proportions, in which we lost three ships - Ikazuchi, Hibiki, and Akatsuki."

Upon hearing these words, the entire fleet burst into panic, interrupting the Admiral.

"Three ships… three ships…"

"I don't want to die! I don't want to die!"

"Is it going to be our turn next? Will we be killed too?"

"Would you listen, you little wretches?!" the Admiral bellowed. The ships instantly fell silent. Never before had they seen their Admiral in such a rage.

The Admiral clenched his fist. "As I was saying, we lost those three ships due to their incompetence. The battle should have been a glorious victory, but thanks to those three and their miserable failure, I was_ humiliated_."

Listening to this, Inazuma could barely restrain herself. Before she could reply, however, the Admiral continued.

"Nevertheless, some commendation must be given. If it were not for Inazuma this battle would have been a complete loss. In fact, without a ship as loyal and talented as she was, I might not even be standing here now. I would like you all to give a round of applause for Inazuma - the sole survivor of the Namsei Islands disaster."

The gathered ships looked disbelieving, but under the Admiral's watchful gaze, they reluctantly began applauding. Inazuma's eyes widened. _M-me? But-but I didn't… do that much… you should be applauding for Akatsuki… Hibiki… Ikazuchi… not me..._

"That said, I have realized that my defeat was primarily due to my entire fleet being made out of pathetic _destroyers_." The Admiral spat the word out. "It has become clear to me that in order to triumph, I shall need to add stronger ship girls to my harbour than weak destroyers."

The listening destroyers began trembling in fear.

"In any case, as of now I am announcing an immediate moratorium on all combat operations. Return to your docks and await further orders." Having said this, the Admiral turned and left.

The other destroyers began gathering in a circle around Inazuma, who cowered in fear.

"Wow, I may have to change my opinion of you, you clumsy beast. Sucking up to the Admiral like that, betraying your sister... I didn't think you were capable of such acts." Miyuki raised her fist angrily.

"You let your friends die for your own glory, didn't you?" another one shouted from the back.

"N-no...I didn't...please, let me off!" Inazuma whimpered.

Soon, the cracking of bone and screams of pain could be heard echoing throughout the harbour.

By the time the Repair Girls stepped in to drag out all the angry destroyers, Inazuma was lying in a pool of blood and tears, and was promptly sent for emergency repairs.


	3. Chapter 3

Days passed, weeks flew, and a month had passed since the tragedy at the Namsei Islands. By now, Inazuma had managed to largely suppress her memories of that fateful day, but she still missed her late friends, especially her sister Ikazuchi.

To honour their memory, she had resolved to become stronger from then on, ignoring the jeers and taunts of the other destroyers. Pushing the limits of a destroyer without fail, through grueling training and never-ending modernization she soon exceeded her peers in every aspect. Impressing even the Admiral, Inazuma had been re-absorbed into the Admiral's first fleet, which was being readied for the next big sortie against the monsters lurking in the waters of the Eastern Oryoru Sea.

* * *

The fleet was definitely mightier than before, as Inazuma felt small in the presence of the new Aircraft Carriers and Battleships.

"Hi! I'm Kongou, delighted to make your acquaintance! I'm the new flagship of this fleet!" The enthusiastic battleship offered her hand to Inazuma, who reciprocated politely.

"I'm Kaga, pleased to meet you." The stoic aircraft carrier gave a gloved hand.

"Oh, so you are that small fry that the Admiral likes so much... I'm Kitakami, the fleet's torpedo specialist! Hehe, your torpedoes are kinda small, eh?" Inazuma blushed, and shook the torpedo cruiser's outstretched hand.

"I'm Houshou, welcome back to the fleet dearie." The motherly light aircraft carrier proffered a cup of green tea, which Inazuma sipped gratefully.

"Nagato, at your service," the large battleship bowed to Inazuma, who nervously returned the gesture.

A familiar figure strode into the harbour. "I suppose you girls are done introducing yourselves to one another?"

The girls nodded, and the Admiral turned to Inazuma, who swallowed nervously. "It has been a while since you have been in service, so let me explain our situation."

"Since the humiliation back at the Namsei Islands, I have not been idle. These five ship girls before you represent the culmination of my efforts to replace the weak, outmoded _destroyers_ in the fleet. In fact, they crushed the Namsei Islands defense line themselves just last week!" the Admiral declared, motioning to the other ships.

Inazuma stared at the ships with newfound awe. _So my sister and friends have been avenged..._

The Admiral now addressed all six ship girls. "Now that little Inazuma here has joined us, we have a full fleet of six ships. Don't underestimate her - I've seen her performance and it's leagues beyond any of the other destroyers. She is a worthy addition to this fleet."

At that, Inazuma blushed._ If only you were here for this, Sister…_

The Admiral continued. "Anyway, I am confident that at last, we are ready to face the next great obstacle in my path to eternal glory - the Eastern Oryoru Sea."

The Admiral paused for a moment. "I have heard the destroyer scouts' reports on this area, and believe me, this will be our hardest battle yet. But you won't fail me, will you?"

"Yes, Admiral!" came the resounding response of the fleet.

"Y-yes, Admiral..." Inazuma joined the other ships' chorus with trepidation.

"Excellent. Make ready, for we set sail in an hour." The Admiral turned and left.


	4. Chapter 4

Before setting off, the fleet conducted a training exercise in the waters around the Guardian Office to boost morale. Watching it, the Admiral was particularly pleased at Inazuma's effortless defeat of two Ro-class destroyers and a Ho-class light cruiser.

_It appears I was right to allow Inazuma back into the fleet. She has far outgrown the pathetic weakness of the other destroyers, and I could not be more proud._

* * *

Finally, it was time for the actual offensive. The morning sunshine sparkled over the tranquil blue expanse that was the Eastern Oryoru Sea as the confident fleet of ships steamed towards it. It was not long before a familiar face showed itself.

"Spin me!" the Compass Girl yelled.

The Admiral scowled at her in annoyance, but spun her anyway.

"North-east!" the girl declared happily.

"Onwards for extra fuel! It seems like the winds are with us today, girls!" the Admiral laughed.

Once the fuel had been retrieved, the fleet proceeded on. It was not long before the inevitable happened.

"I'm detecting enemies ahead, Admiral," Kongou reported.

"Their disposition," the Admiral pressed.

"Two heavy cruisers, two light cruisers, two destroyers," Kongou replied.

The Admiral snorted contemptously. "No more than insects. Brush them off so we can crush the real boss of these monsters."

Kongou grinned. "Alright, fleet, let's show these aliens who's boss! Fi-re!"

With the rumbling boom of Kongou's 46cm batteries, the battle was joined. Inazuma watched, awestruck, as an enemy light cruiser was obliterated by the impact.

Now, it was Inazuma's turn. Gritting her teeth, she took careful aim at one of the enemy destroyers.

"_Nano desu_!" With her cry, the destroyer exploded.

"Is that the best you weaklings can do?" Kitakami taunted, an enemy barrage bouncing off her harmlessly. The destroyer responsible perished in a hail of torpedoes.

Not to be outdone, Nagato opened fire and another of the monsters reeled, it's left side blown apart.

Kaga raised a gloved fist, reaping a grim harvest of death with her array of bombers.

"Wind direction, check! Air unit, take off!" Houshou exclaimed, unleashing death from the skies on an enemy heavy cruiser.

* * *

Finally, the enemies were nothing but flaming wrecks.

"They were no match for us," Kongou boasted.

"Indeed, my dear. Let us not tarry any longer; the boss awaits."

* * *

After a brief stop to pick up more fuel, including another lucky spin at the compass, the fateful time had come at last.

The Admiral adjusted his cap slightly."This is it, ship girls. The final showdown. Are you ready?"

Seeing their affirmative nods, the Admiral allowed himself a smile. "Let's do this."

Confidently, almost arrogantly, the fleet sallied forth to battle. The enemy ships were soon visible on the horizon - two of the dreaded _Wo_-class, a battleship, two heavy cruisers and a lone destroyer.

The Admiral's tactician self went to work. "Alright! Kaga, Houshou, take down those carriers. Kongou, crush your opposing number. Nagato, Kitakami, annihilate those cruisers. And Inazuma, show that destroyer your strength! Everyone, attack!"

With affirmative nods, Kaga and Houshou's preemptive strike descended upon the enemies like divine punishment. In the carnage of smoke and steel, both the vaunted Wo-class carriers were reduced to scrap. Maimed by the blow, the enemy Battleship let loose a scream of rage.

The Admiral was unfazed. "Don't let up! Grind them into the dust!"

"_Burning... Love!_" Kongou yelled, reducing the battleship to a smoking wreck with a single shell.

Kaga motioned again, and _Suisei_ comet dive bombers rained steel upon a heavy cruiser, leaving it a wreck of twisted metal.

_Good... Good... This is far easier than I expected._ Satisfied the battle was going well, the Admiral now turned his gaze to Inazuma.

"Inazuma! It's time! Show me the results of all your training!"

Inazuma raised her 10cm artillery, took a good look at the enemy destroyer, readying to strike… and halted. Though the vessel before her was similar to the others of its kind, a single radiant, brown eye set in a twisted lump of greyish flesh upon an animalistic body, there was something vaguely familiar about it.

"W-wait, Admiral. There's something peculiar about this enemy. I need to get closer for a look," Inazuma pleaded.

"You can take a 'closer look' after it's dead. Fire now, Inazuma." The Admiral's voice took on a sharper edge.

"But Admi-" Inazuma's objection was cut short by a chilling realization. The petite contours of the face of the enemy destroyer, it's strangely familiar pose, and even its misshapen grin taken alone meant nothing, but combined…

"_Sister…?_" Inazuma trembled disbelievingly.

The enemy destroyer started spasming violently, spitting garbled, unintelligible noises from its mouth, but behind the monstrous-sounding nonsense, Inazuma thought she could hear a girl's voice, screaming.

She could even see tears trickling from its eye.

"What's wrong? Finish that beast now!" the Admiral commanded.

"Admiral! That's not what you think it is! It's Ikazuchi!" Inazuma screamed.

The Admiral paused, momentarily stunned. "What did you just say?"

Rivulets streamed from Inazuma's eyes. "I recognize her! They've turned her into a monster, but she's still Ikazuchi! Admiral, we must save her-"

"Enough!" The Admiral bellowed. "I don't know where you've gotten this irrational delusion from all of a sudden, but I don't care! Destroy that ship!"

At this point, the enemy destroyer did something outrageous; it went out of formation of the enemy fleet, cruising slowly towards Inazuma.

"SHOOT IT NOW!" roared the Admiral.

Inazuma looked down. "...No. I'm sorry, Admiral, but I won't do it. I won't kill Ikazuchi!"

Spittle exploded from the Admiral's mouth. "You dare defy me?! Me?!"

Inazuma remained defiant, and the Admiral turned to Kongou. "If she doesn't have the guts for this, I'm sure you do. Finish this."

Kongou bit her lip anxiously. "Are you sure, Admiral? Maybe we should listen to Inazuma-"

"DESTROY THAT SHIP NOW! THAT IS A DIRECT ORDER!" the Admiral screamed hysterically.

"...Yes, Admiral," Kongou murmured reluctantly, unleashing the barrage of her 46cm batteries. Halfway between the two fleets the enemy destroyer was hit, perishing in an inferno of burnt scrap and flesh. It's last screams of agony chilled the fleet to the bone; they were unmistakably human.

The Admiral remained unfazed, even as Inazuma began wailing and sobbing. "Ship girls, dispose of the rest of these enemies."


	5. Chapter 5

Inazuma stood in the middle of the Admiral's room, her gaze defiant. Upon the destruction of the last enemy Heavy Cruiser, the fleet had returned to port, where the Admiral had ordered the other ships to leave them, bringing Inazuma to his room for a special debriefing session. Now, he turned to Inazuma.

"On account of your valiant service before today, I am going to give you a chance to explain yourself. Why did you disobey my direct order?" The Admiral demanded angrily.

Inazuma glared at the Admiral. "I was trying to save Ikazuchi, until you ordered Kongou to kill her! You killed my sister!"

The Admiral was infuriated. "I've had it with that nonsense! That… thing could not possibly have been your worthless sister!"

Inazuma clenched her fists. "She was! And I could have saved her, if not for you!"

"_Enough!_" The Admiral lashed out, sending Inazuma sprawling on the floor. "Even if by some miracle that monstrosity was Ikazuchi, and she still remained some of her consciousness, how on earth would we have saved her?"

Inazuma got up painfully, wiping blood off her lip. "You… could… have tried…"

The Admiral's eyes narrowed. "I wouldn't have bothered, actually. Even if everything you said is true, even if we could reverse her conversion, at the end of it all I'd get back would be a useless, weak destroyer. If that really was Ikazuchi, then I'm glad to bid her good riddance, for ever."

Inazuma trembled in rage. "How dare you! Ikazuchi was never weak or useless! S-she fought for you valiantly, even when hopelessly outmatched! In fact… you're the one who's weak."

The Admiral's eyes widened. "What did you just say?!"

Inazuma clenched her fists. "I-I said, you're weak! Y-you sacrificed my sister… Akatsuki… Hibiki… All of them died needlessly thanks to you, and you didn't have the guts to admit your mistake, pinning the blame on them instead! If any of the new ships had lost due to your overconfidence, you would have shifted the blame to them as well! It's you who are u-useless, you who are weak!_ Y-you don't deserve to be an Admiral!_"

The room had gone ice cold.

The Admiral stared at Inazuma, livid with rage. "Take that back right now."

"No," Inazuma replied, this time without the slightest fear or hesitation.

With a yell the Admiral whirled, delivering a kick to Inazuma's gut. As she collapsed, the Admiral kicked her again and again. "You worthless destroyer! How dare you! How dare you speak to me in such a manner! I should kill you for that, leave you like the rest of your worthless friends!_ I should kill you!_"

When the Admiral stopped at last, breathless with rage, Inazuma lay on the floor unconscious, a trickle of blood flowing from her mouth.

He sighed. "It's a shame, really. I thought you had overcome the weaknesses of the rest of your wretched kind, but your stupidity and insubordination ruined everything."

The Admiral snapped his fingers, and two Repair Girls appeared, their chatter cut off by the sight of the limp Inazuma. "Get this treacherous bitch out of my sight!" the Admiral yelled. Terrified, the Repair Girls quickly complied.

When they had left, the Admiral sat in his high-backed chair, brooding._ Inazuma has proven that the entire species of destroyers is nothing more than useless chattel. I shall never let any of them corrupt my glorious main fleet ever again. Light cruisers too. Kitakami is too weak... Only if she proves herself will she be allowed to stay. In fact, everyone save Battleships, Aircraft Carriers and maybe those Submarines are unworthy. It's settled then._

The Admiral smiled for the first time since entering the room, envisioning his new fleet. "Nothing can stop me now."


	6. Epilogue

Inazuma awoke again to the darkness of her cell. It had been uncounted days since had been thrown in this dirty, dank pit by the Admiral. Her hair had long since become an unkempt mess, her clothes were tattered with holes, her weapons were gone, and daylight was a distant memory.

Occasionally, the grim monotony of her imprisonment had been broken by the screams and protests of various ship girls as they were dragged into nearby cells to share her fate; spending eternity isolated and forgotten. She remembered swift Shimakaze, arrogance forgotten as she begged and pleaded for mercy. Poor Kitakami, banished here after her failure to impress the Admiral, accepting her fate with all the dignity she could muster. One particularly rude destroyer, Akebono, who screamed curses and insults at the Admiral the entire way down. Now, though, they had all fallen silent.

Stuck with nothing to do, nothing to see, Inazuma had slowly gone mad. Some days she would spend hours on end screaming, smashing her fists on the walls, begging to be let out. Other days she would merely sit in a corner, moaning to herself. Today, her thoughts drifted to her fallen friends, from so long ago._ Oh, Ikazuchi... Hibiki... Akatsuki... I hope wherever you are, it's better than this hellhole. I should have died that day, then I could be with you now…_

Her thoughts now drifted to the Admiral, still above there somewhere with his 'Glorious Fleet' of 'worthy' ships.

She recalled mornings eons ago, when the Admiral had smiled at her and her sisters, the handsome, proud grin of satisfaction he reserved for them. She sighed.

_I wish… I wish I could rejoin the fleet again. Even if the Admiral thinks I'm trash… I'd do anything for him. I'd be his slave, accept his punishment and abuse, if only he let me join the fleet. I want to see the sun again, to feel the ocean breeze, to smell the sea again… That is my hope._

With no way to judge the flow of time, Inazuma spent every moment staring at the locked iron door, imagining light from the docks pouring out of it.

* * *

On a certain day, as if triggered by Inazuma's thoughts, the door suddenly creaked open. Light shone into the room, illuminating an unfamiliar girl's face. She was wearing a traditional blue sailor cap, her head covered with beautiful yellow-blonde hair with strands of it tied in tiny locks, and wrapped around her body was a dark blue swimsuit.

"W-who a-are you?" Inazuma stammered at the girl, "D-did the Admiral send you?"

"_Guten tag_, i'm I-8. I am under the orders of the Admiral to bring you to a certain place," I-8 bowed politely to a shocked Inazuma.

"A-are you part of the main fleet? How is the Admiral doing?" Inazuma blurted out.

"Yes, indeed I am. The main fleet nowadays is composed of submarines like me and aircraft carriers like Kaga and Akagi. The Admiral has been doing very well, although recently it seems that the battleships fell out of favour with him," I-8 replied, her tone rather wary.

"A-am I the the only ship that has been released so far…?" Inazuma inquired, thinking of ships like Kitakami and Akebono.

"Kitakami has been released nearly a month ago, when the Admiral ordered for her. She is now training and transporting in the expedition fleets, when the Admiral saw immense potential in her as a torpedo cruiser."

"I-I see…" Inazuma murmured to herself._ If the Admiral did that… maybe.. just maybe… I could rejoin the fleet…_

They walked out to the surface, and Inazuma was delighted to taste the sea breeze, to have warm sunlight fall upon her once again. Compared to the hell she had been in, even these simple pleasures felt heavenly.

Soon, the two ships halted outside a small metal door at a house near the dock. I-8 turned to Inazuma. "Please, step in here."

"A-are you sure?" Inazuma had never seen this place before, and wondered what its purpose might be.

"Yes, please enter. The Admiral commands it," I-8 motioned towards the door. "I'll take my leave now, if you please."

"A-all right… I won't let the Admiral down." Stepping inside, Inazuma failed to notice the tears glistening on I-8's face.

The submarine stared at the door sadly. "I'm sorry… please forgive me."

The cold steel doors shut behind Inazuma, darkness enveloping her.

* * *

The Admiral sat at his blue wooden desk, sifting through the morning reports of the resources that he had gathered recently.

"Ah, the second expedition fleet has done well obtaining bauxite. Akagi and Kaga will certainly be pleased," he murmured to himself. He flipped to another page in the report, filled with the names of various ships, many of them crossed out.

He glanced at the name of one of the many destroyers on the list.

"1 barrel of fuel...2 boxes of ammunition...10 buckets of steel…" he read out slowly.

Looking out of the window, in view a splendid blue ocean, he sighed.

"I almost thought she was worth more than that."

_The End_


End file.
